Tuesday, November 5, 2013

A portrait of Madame Adelaïde by Jean-Marc Nattier

Jean-Marc Nattier is best known for his exquisite portraits of women from the court of Louis XV. Nattier was renowned for both his traditional court portraits as well as his allegorical portraits, which often depicted women as mythological goddesses, muses and other figures.

Nattier not only painted many high-ranking ladies who once roamed the halls of Versailles--he was also frequently commissioned to paint portraits of the royal family, including the daughters of Louis XV.

This portrait of Madame Adelaïde was completed in 1758. For this portrait,
Adelaïde is depicted wearing a luxurious blue gown trimmed in fur, which
was a favorite among the French royals. Like most royal women, she
has been painted in a setting that reminds the viewer of her station as a
daughter of the King. But it's the other details in this portrait that I find
the most compelling. I think the inclusion of a musical instrument, sheet music and a small dog add a softer touch to the portrait that make
it feel more personal and less symbolic.

I believe this may be a papillion, or a similar type of spaniel. There is a similar dog (which, I believe, is positively identified as a papillion!) in a family portrait of Louis XIV, so perhaps smaller spaniel breeds were popular in the French court of the 17th-18th centuries. It certainly seems like Madame Adelaïde's spaniel is making a mess of her fallen sheet music!

Visitors to Versailles: From Louis XIV to the French Revolution by Daniëlle O. Kisluk-Grosheide and Bertrand Rondot [April 2018]Enchanted Islands: Picturing the Allure of Conquest in Eighteenth-Century France by Mary D. Sheriff [April 2018]The Little Book of Versailles by Dominique Foufelle [May 2018]

A Genealogy of Terror in Eighteenth-Century France by Ronald Schechter [June 2018]The Culture of French Revolutionary Diplomacy: In the Face of Europe by Linda Frey and Marsha Frey [June 2018]

Robespierre and the Festival of the Supreme Being: The search for a republican morality by Jonathan Smyth [June 2018]Marie Antoinette at Petit Trianon: Heritage Interpretation and Visitor Perceptions by Denise Maior-Barron [July 2018]

The Routledge Companion to the French Revolution in World History edited by Alan Forrest [July 2018]

In the Red and in the Black: Debt, Dishonor, and the Law in France between Revolutions by Erika Vause [October 2018]Versailles by Colin Jones [November 2018]

About Me

I am a history loving writer who enjoys reading and blogging in my spare time. I currently run three blogs: Reading Treasure, a blog dedicated to books and more about Marie Antoinette and 18th century France; Treasure for Your Pleasure, a Tumblr microblog dedicated to Marie Antoinette and her world; and my newest blog, Inviting History, a book blog dedicated to unique and overlooked history books.

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